>> i think there's a fundamental problem and that is the republican party. that their polls reflect the fact that the real issue in this campaign has become the republican party in washington, and that it's a radical party such as we've never seen in a presidential race before, that mitt romney has become a captive of it. as we have seen in the senate races that are shifting more and more towards democrats who are expected to lose or be competitive, it's about who the republicans are in washington and really radical message that romney is saddled with and he can't get out of it. the 47% remark is devastating because it really reflects what so many people in the republican majority in washington, in the house particularly, believe, that these are free loaders, that these are people that aren't worthy of our consideration really as human beings in our social contract.

romney said out loud what many in his party leave and what an ideology in his party has come to embrace. it was no accident he said it. he stuck with it. >> that would be a radical shift from what a lot of people thought this campaign would be, lynn, and certainly what the romney campaign wanted it to be, which is a referendum on the president. do you agree that this could be a referendum on the republican party and republicans in congress? >> well, i respectfully disagree a bit because in the end this is more about the two men running, though the context, as carl points out, is correct. the republicans in congress are unpopular but actually so are the democrats. here is my point. just as one video seemed to have been the game changer in this election, the 47%er, we still have three debates coming up, where if mitt romney was to do a turn around, he has a chance, starting tuesday -- starting october 3rd in denver, wednesday -- where he has, i

think, some of the few chances left to try and figure out a way to turn this around. to explain if there is an explanation for what he really want wants to do that will be more inclusive than that video sent. he has a few chances left if trend is against him but i'm not ready to call it yet. >> i have to say, it does seem over the last 24, 48 hours they do some very specific thing. he's getting out there more. he's been doing a ton of interviews. after all, the criticism early on that he was never there to be interviewed. let me play a little clip from yesterday. >> throughout this campailmpaig well. don't forget, i got everybody in my state insured. 100% of the kids in my state have health insurance. i don't think there's anything that shows more empathy and care about the people in this country than that kind of record. >> a lot of people who follow politic, carl, their jaw dropped from that. he was running away from it. >> now talking about it.

>> he's damned if he does, he's damned if he doesn't. he ran against ted kennedy in 1994 as a left of center republican and now running as a far right candidate trying to run away from his own record, now trying to run back to the old record. who the hell know where's he is. >> let me ask your expertise. would it have been a bad idea for him to say, look, from the beginning i insured 100% of kids in massachusetts, and we did it in a different way than the president is proposing, a smarter way. >> i think -- >> a more cost effective way. >> a granddaughter, a small question when, in fact, the big question is his credibility as a candidate. it's shocked. can he win? sure. there's still scenario he could win. there are debates. the problem in the debates, he's got a big glass jaw out there on what he said in 1994. he's really trapped. he's trapped by himself and he's trapped by the people who have captured him on the republican

right. in washington, there have been since the mccarthy era, a hunt for so-called radicals on the other side. there's never been a really radical democratic party, but now we have in washington a truly radical republican party way outside the mainstream of even the ronald reagan party. there's a huge problem that romney has to position himself. he was in a position to make it one point obama and his presidency the issue. he's lost that chance by what happened at the convention. >> actually, i think he might have lost that chance when he picked paul ryan as his running mate. >> absolutely. lynn is absolutely right. >> that's -- that is where that turned. before then, i think it was a referendum on obama's tenure as the leader of our economy. >> right. he had bob portman, he had a perfect chance to win ohio to say i'm a centrist mainstream

republican. here i am. i told you people on the right where i stand on things. i'm now not going to pick the most radical, both fis fiscally and in terms of physical policy guy in washington of any influence. he went to ryan and he stuck with him now and he brought him nothing, ryan. >> charlie crist, a rmepublican and now independent and he does support president obama. governor, good to see you. to carl's point as well as lynn's and let's talk about this selection of paul ryan. you come from a state obviously with a very large older population, key voting bloc. they vote in big percentages. did he buy into, my choosing ryan, the medicare plan which now in every swing state shows not just that people favor president obama's approach but they favor it by double digits. this isn't even close. >> it's pretty stunning. i think the selection did make that a crystal clear choice

between these two candidates. what's happening in florida, the latest poll has a nine-point advantage for president obama. and i think a large part of the reason is due to the medicare and social security issue. but i really think it comes down to something that carl was just talking about. this tape that was done of candidate romney when he was at the fund-raiser was extremely revealing and now has become terribly devastating to the romney campaign. and what it shows is, i think, a callousness and an attitude toward 47% of the people that we haven't seen in a candidate before. what candidate talks like that and says that, you know, i can't worry about those people and i'm not going to be able to change them and have them have personal responsibility. i mean, it's absolutely stunning to hear those kinds of candid remarks from somebody who wants to be president of the entire country. >> there's another problem with the remarks that the governor is hinting at. also, it's too bad there's not somebody from the romney camp to

join us, people clubbing to guy today here on the show. but at the same time, those comments reflect an ignorance about america that is absolutely stunning. a lack of knowledge that i've never seen in a presidential candidate before. how could romney not know that those people are veterans, that those people are people who are on medicaid, people who can't help themselves for all kinds of reasons. they're on disability. they're not just moochers, as some in the republican party would have it. now romney is running around saying, oh, yeah, i know that's who they are. why in the hell didn't he know in the first place and open his yap like that? it makes no sense outside of sheer ignorance that i've never seen a presidential candidate say anything like that. >> having said that, governor, and i think lynn makes a good point. first of all, you have three debates coming up. a very critical one coming up next week. you know, we've also seen over the last couple of weeks that there are events outside the

control of either candidate, talking about what happened in libya, talking about other things that are going on in those arab spring countries. is it too soon to be running the epitaph for the romney campaign and what can they do in places like florida and ohio? >> certainly, i think it's too soon to be running the epitaph. 40 days left, that's an eternity in politics. with the three debates coming up, one in wednesday and the last one will be held here in the sunshine state. those are always opportunities for both candidates to project a message that they want to prior to election day itself. but let's also remember, people are t voting early and a lot of states already across the country. and that's something that should not be lost in this discussion. while these polls are where they are today, and i know they're just a snapshot, people are actively engaging in early voting. and so i think that's significant and important. but the debates will be important and the fact that there are three of them, plus

the vice presidential debate, does give the romney campaign ample opportunity to sort of recalibrate things. but at this stage, i would much rather be with the president than governor romney's campaign. i mean, it's a tough time for them. >> one quick point on the last presidential debate. it will be in boca raton, the very place where that videotape was mailede. >> let me ask you something else, lynn, about those early voters. traditionally they've been people they know who they're going to vote to, decided people. i would take something probably pretty big for them to move it. so the chances, i think, of something catastrophic happening to either candidate making a huge misstep is probably pretty small. but never the less, given the fact that so many states are now started to come online with early voting, how big a factor is that? >> well, in any of these states where the battleground states, which is what we're really talking about, chris, i would think you don't want to take a chance.

that's why every time mrs. obama is on the campaign trail, she talks about going up and voting, especially to students. she has a very tailored mess taj. you might over sleep, you might get into a class. you don't want to take your plus fold irs and even take a chance they won't show up. that's why you want to lock them in early so that somebody doesn't change their minds, so that somebody doesn't have an emergency and can't go or just whatever life brings you on that voting day. and that's why in the end this is really a ground game for all that we might talk about other issues. the undecideds are very few. that's what this campaign is about now. it's about more than anything, getting out your vote, ground game is very important. >> i have some very interesting conversations on this program, particularly with people who are involved with super pacs who still want to talk about the significance obviously of these hundreds of millions of dollars that are being spent. there was a great piece in the "washington post" this morning that outlined how they say president obama spent smarter on advertising. let me just give you an example

for an ad in ohio, he's paying about 125 bucks. and that same spot is costing a republican super pac $900 because candidates get discounts under federal election law. and i wonder if -- how you think, carl, ads are going to play into how this campaign eventually goes and, you know, is there advantage to one side or another? >> well, first of all, i think the worst thing that has happened to romney is an ad that repeats the 47% statement. and that keeps running in the battleground states. there's nothing he can do about it. at the same time, i think a lot of this negative advertising has canceled itself out. the free media is making a huge difference in this election. it's really moving the numbers much more than this super pac advertising is. i think that the citizens united decision by the supreme court is really the worse thing that's happened to our electoral system in maybe 50 years and we're trying to live with it.

and happily in this election, the candidates seem to be drowning each other out in this expensive advertising, and people more and more are looking at free media. but one of the big problems for romney is that 47% video which is being looked at time and time again, both in ads and on the news. and let me just also say though, that, you know, these polls are still a snapshot. things could change. i suspect they might well get a little closer in this race. people might say the momentum is going to go another way. but what is so interesting to me is what republicans that i know in washington are saying to me, and that is that their own polling shows trending moving away from romney in a very worrisome way. and that they think they're headed for a train wreck, unless something very surprising happens in some kind of rabbit or event is pulled out of a hat.

>> before we go i have to ask you, governor. we've seen another poll that shows you leading rick scott in a hypothetical governor's race in 2014. are you thinking about it? >> i'm thinking about re-electing president obama and that's awfully important. we only have 40 days to go. that's what the focus needs to be. this is probably the most important election we have. i think the country is at a cross roads. we need a man like president obama to get the job done and make sure that all citizens are looked out for in this great country. >> you're not thinking about it yet? >> i'm not. >> all right. well, it's good to see you. thank you so much for coming on. always glad to have you, carl. lynn sweet, thank you as well. 900 hours until election day. we hope you all come back and fill some of them for us. we do appreciate it. the other big thing people have been talking about, and that is the nfl. outrage among fans and players finally hit the boiling point. the controversy got so big it was even mentioned in the approximate presidential campaign. the nfl's regular referees are going back on the field tonight. will they be ready?

we are live at the nfl's headquarters in new york with the overnight deal. ♪ ♪ ♪ hi dad. many years from now, when the subaru is theirs... hey. you missed a spot. ...i'll look back on this day and laugh. love. it's what makes a subaru, a subaru.

prepare to see a lot more of mitt romney and paul ryan on the same stage at the same time because they're going to be campaigning together more often in coming weeks. "the new york times" writes that ryan helps get people, quote, more fired up about mr. romney's message than mr. romney does at his own rallies. at the same time, there was a satire in politico and it's been fueling speculation that the romney/ryan relationship is strained. joan meg now, the author of that piece, chief political columnist for politico, roger simon.

i thought it was pretty funny but some readers were confused that your piece was a satire. let me read an excerpt. reportedly, ryan has been marching around his campaign bus saying things like, if stench call, take a message, and tell stench i'm having finger sandwiches with peggy noonan and i'll text him later. politico added a editor's note clarifying about the satire, but i know some readers were indeed confused. tell me about what's been going on with this piece. the point and the reaction. >> sure. the point is that i didn't invent the word stench. i think if i had called mitt romney mr. stench it would have been in bad taste and i would never have done it. the fact is that word that phrase comes from the former political director of the iowa republican party, a guy named craig robinson, who was quoted by name in the "new york times"

as saying if paul ryan wants a future, he will have to -- he will have to wash the stench of mitt romney off of him. so i used that. i got a very, very nice note the next morning, an e-mail, from the paul ryan campaign. very polite. it said, you know, we know this is satire, but could you help us out here and maybe make a little more clear it's satire? i could have said no. i could have said, you know, if people don't get it, they don't get it. but i thought to myself what if the romney/ryan ticket loses florida by 13 instead of just 10 or virginia by 11 instead of just 9 and it's my fault. you know, i'll carry that on my conscience forever. so i wrote a little note at the bottom saying, in a funny way, don't worry, folks, this is

satire. although -- >> having said that, i mean, there are real points, real political points that are being made as a result of this about what's going on inside the campaign and what do you think is the main thing, as people look at what peggy noonan has called this very dysfunctional campaign that needs a total makeover. >> yeah. >> what is it? >> this is a common dynamic. the number two on the ticket often has a very distinguished record. paul ryan has a longer record in congress, in washington, far longer than mitt romney has, yet paul ryan is treated like a surrogate. he doesn't get to choose his own staff. he has a staff loyal to mitt romney, around him every minute. he is told what to say and told what to do. that's fine as long as romney is winning but romney is not winning. he's losing, and that unleashes

the vice presidential candidate to act in his or her own way, sarah palin to start attacking barack obama more. it has unleashed paul ryan to start using power point because power point is a bad sign is exactly what you showed at the top. having your vice president and presidential candidate campaign together is a huge waste of resources. you want them split up campaigning in different places on different days and getting twice the punch for the campaign. putting them together does nothing for you. >> it is something that people are talking about. i think it's the number one most read on politico so people can check it out there. roger simon, great to talk to you. >> great to talk to you, chris, as always. israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu is going to

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to politics now with president obama turned a gaffe into a laugh in ohio yesterday. >> first thing is i want to see us export more jobs -- export more products. excuse me. i was -- i was channeling my op po poen nent there for a second. >> congressman elton gallegly is the latest theft victim. they swiped skash and other

things. congressman and other offices have also been hit. prime minister david cameron talked to david letterman last night. >> the designation of british empire, now, in the days of colonization, britain really did rule the world, didn't they? the sun never sets on the british. >> it was a moment where the globe was like a -- and that was -- >> historically, do we look back on that period now as just awful, don't we? >> i think there was some -- there was some -- there was some good bits and there was some less than good bits. obviously, you know, we had a bit of a falling out. >> good bits, bad bits. and if you read only one thing this morning, ask any big city police department what's been keeping them really busy and they'll tell you it's the rising number of robberies and muggings targeting smart phone, ipads, and other personal electronics. wait until you read about the chaotic string of events after one recent theft. it's crazy.

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like the droid razr. president obama and mitt romney are taking a direct a proech in two new campaign ads. >> if i could sit down with you in your living room or around the kitchen table, here's what i'd say. when i took office we were losing nearly 800,000 jobs a month and were mired in iraq. today i believe that as nation we are moving forward again. >> more americans are living in po verity than when president obama took office. my plan will create 12 million new jobs over the next 4 years. helping lift families out of poverty and strengthening the middle class. >> does this signal a new phase of the ad wars and this campaign? i'm joined now by democratic strategist steve and deputy manager for john kerry and by former republican governor of michigan. good morning, gentlemen. >> good morning. >> steve, what do you think?

is this the new face of the campaign? does it help most candidates to be more direct and obviously very different than some of the attack ads we've seen, especially from the super pacs? >> all campaigns have a rhythm and as you get closer to the end, people understand that there's a choice between two people at the top of the ticket. and they want to hear from them directly about what their plans are for the american people. we believe this election is a choice and i think when people look at the choice between the two candidates barack obama is going to win. >> mitt romney's numbers are down in key swing states. and let me play for you what was said yesterday by former -- by ohio governor john kay sick about those polls. >> in these polls don't even pay attention to them. the numbers you just cited are numbers i didn't pay attention to on my own numbers because it depends when you ask, it defends how you ask, it depends what the sample is. look, i think this is very close out here. >> governor, three polls in swing states in just a couple of

days. they all show the movement 2re7 trending away from mitt romney, toward barack obama. is there something an internal polling in the romney that's telling them something different, are they kidding themselves? >> well, i think that's internal to the romney campaign, i don't even know those numbers but i can tell you the two ads we just saw are engaging on the right topic for the american t voters. a business round-table last week had a meeting. our ceo said it privately and then publicly yesterday, we released a big drop, third sharpest drop in expect i guess so as of ceos on sales and hiring than we've seen in ten years. the economy is not good and for the candidates for the presidency to be talking about competing growth agendas, that ought to be good ground for romney. >> why is that message not getting out? what has he done that's not been effective? >> i don't know. maybe taxes, tapes, conventions. >> 47%, yeah? >> no, i think what he is, this is a long time in this campaign. i believe with governor kasich.

before governor of 1990, the weekend before in the front page of the paper said i would lose 54-40. these polls are not what voters are thinking often and i say let these candidates engage on the economic issues. governor romney can't win on those issues, he won't win. but i think he can. >> well, you know, we've also seen and talked about this earlier in the hour about how there seems to be a change in strategy on mitt romney's part, going out more with his vt shul candidate, by getting out there and doing a lot more interviews. we're seeing a lot more of ann romney. here she was appearing on "the tonight show" with jay leno and "access hollywood" where she called her husband -- we don't have that but called him the life of the party. what about those kinds of things, when you have other people, steve, helping to try to introduce your candidate at this stage of the game? >> well, i'd like to agree with governor angler. i think you two candidates in the ad showed very different views of how to grow the

economy. you know, i think ann romney is a terrific person. i think michelle obama is a terrific person. i think, you know, joe biden and paul ryan have very different views of the world, but at the end of the day i think people are going to go out and vote in this election based on the two principles, based on what they think about mitt romney and what they think about barack obama and what they think about their vision for the economy. i don't think, you know, all the rest of it sort of helps create a picture but i don't think people are going to vote in this election based on other people other than the two candidates. >> if a big problem for mitt romney is this 47% comment and it does seem that things have trended away from him since then, governor, the question becomes, can you unring the bell? i want to show you an example and obviously it's a spoof, it's from jimmy kimmel, but he was using that, look directly into the camera ad. look what he did with it. >> more americans are living in poverty than when president obama took office. we shouldn't measure compassion by how many people are on welfare. we should measure compassion by

how many people are able to get off welfare and get a good paying job. i'm mitt romney. and i approve of this message. >> to the point, how do you unring that bell? >> well, he shouldn't try to unring it because i think he should defend what he said and move on because if we are headed down the same path that 47% which i think is 53%, i think he's a little behind the curve, i think we're going to have more people -- what you want is an economy that doesn't have a record number of people out of the workforce. you don't want one in five american males to get up in the morning without a job to go to. i think a dueling debate about the jobs -- the president has had four years to put a plan forward. 8% plus unemployment, now for 40 plus morntsz. i think the romney campaign, if they stay on the economic message in the debates and in their ads and in their campaign rallies will be in a fine position by election day. the president has got to defend p record. romney better have a bet youer view.

i think he does. >> governor angler, thank you so much. also making this news this morning. a ruling on pennsylvania's voter id law. the judge suggested he could block the law and at a hearing this morning several people who have had a hard time getting a valid photo, i dirks will testify. the judge must issue an injunction if he finds the state hasn't provided free and easy access to an id. the national parks service is planning a one-time removal of algae that's build up at the lincoln memorial reflecting pool. it just went a reconstruction and because it's smaller and more shallow, algae just keeps blooming. they're going to adjust the ozones in the water. there is yet another new search under way for missing teamster jimmy hoffa. police plan to dig into a driveway at a detroit home today or tomorrow and take a soil sample. a dying man claims he saw someone bury a both body there

just hours after hoffman disappeared in 1975. radar shows there is something under that concrete. on the united airlines flight from chicago, several people had to tackle an unruly passenger who reportedly began pacing around the cabin, grabbing women and harassing people. he was tied up with belts and passengers actually applauded after the flight landed in california and he was arrested. the number of people who owe student loans is skyrocketing. doubling in just the last 20 years. a new pugh center analysis i finds one in five households now owes student loan debt and that number jumps to 40% for any household headed by someone under 35. the average balance, almost $27,000. speaking of money. there's a halloween spending free apparently coming up. amanda drury is here with what's moving your money. i guess they think there's going to be record money spent on halloween? >> uh-huh.

record money. >> candy. >> $8 billion apparently going to be spent this year. that's up 16% from last year. a record 170 million people plan to celebrate halloween apparently. that's seven in ten americans that are going to get into the mood. each person, chris will, spend on average $79.82 on decoration, costumes, and candy, that's up from $72.31 last year. i guess what people are spending on their pet costumes, by pet, i mean dogs, of course, a record $370 million. that is up nearly 30% from last year. i believe that pet costumes, chris, are the industry's fastest growing costumes. >> and speaking of candy, a lot of kids are mistaking these little laundry detergent pods. they're laundry detergent pods, they make them for your washing machine. there's a call for new safety precautions because they look so enticing to kids. >> they do. they do. anned a have casey consumer

report is asking the consumer product safety commission to take steps regarding the dangers that are from those little single use detergent packets that are made by several different companies. we're not pointing the finger at one in particular. what kind of step, the first one, make the colors less appealing to children because they look like candy. poison control centers have received nearly $3,000 calls involving children 5 and under who have ingested them. >> cnbc's mandy drury, thank you. are you fed up with wearing a suit to work? well, you're in luck. a new linked in survey is saying formal attire is a trend that could become extincht. the most lickly to disappear within the next five years, desk phone, standard working hours, the rolodex, fax machines, about time, and tape recorders. want to give your family more vitamins, omega 3s,

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rvenlg fwob. pregnant women exposed to air pollution may be putting their unborn child at risk. newborns who were exposed to air pollution through their mothers had a higher risk for vitamin d deficiencies than those who were not exposed. the association was strongest when exposure occurred during the third trimester. it is crunch time for congressional candidates as they clamor for some money from national party committees. here's what's at stake. the democrats congressional campaign committee has reserved more than $61 million in airtime across 41 districts through election day. republicans have set aside nearly $44 million in 35 districts. joining me now, rolle call's sheer a.

good to see you. >> good morning to you, too. >> this is what you call triage time. explain that. >> yeah. absolutely. a party has been harvesting financial resources for the entire cycle and they've put to it all these media markets but the races change really quickly over the last two months of the campaign. so party committees right now look over polling data, they look over candidates, they look over the trends and the races to figure out which ones are going to be worth their resources in these last pivotal weeks and which ones are not, which races and which candidates and sometimes incumbents are on the chopping block. >> sometimes the most fascinating race is todd akin, of course, the republican who made those controversial comments about rape. and, you know, the republican party was calling for him to step down. he got of a phone call from paul ryan. and yet he stuck in. part of the calculation seemed to be once they realize i'm not going anywhere, they're going to give me money because they still want to have the opportunity to beat claire mccaskill.

could that pay off? it. >> could pay off in the long run. initially, cross roads, the big republican super pac, and the nrc, republicans campaign on, they pulled their money from that race after todd akin made those comments. they said we're not spending on this guy. they saw it as hopeless or a move to force hip out of the race. now that the deadline has passed for akin to get off the ballot, senate republicans released a statement yesterday saying they're somewhat reconsidering. i think if this is a close race a couple weeks out from election day i wouldn't be surprised if you saw conservative groups go in there and start spending on his behalf. a senate seat is a senate seat. >> you also mentioned larry kissle of north carolina. how does that look? >> since north carolina republicans redrew the lines in that state they drew him a really difficult district. his re-election prospects are always somewhat hopeless. what we've seen in the last couple of weeks, house democrats have started pooling their ad buys one week at a time from that district in these pivotal weeks in october.

so it doesn't look like larry kissell right now is going to get a lot of help. >> national republican operatives have been privately concede that congressman joe walsh of illinois would lose his re-election bid p he's running against iraq war veteran tammy duckworth. is that more competitive? >> there are some signs. the national republican congressional committee, the house republican campaign arm, bout a lot of cable time just yesterday in areas that are included in the eighth district where joe walsh is seeking re-election. so we're seeing some hints at roll call and internal polls floating around that this race could be competitive. still not sure it's very competitive yet and certainly a t lot of other races in illinois that are competitive but it's rising. >> it's one that a lot of people are watching. so give us the inside scoop. ho el s who else are you looking at that could be facing the chopping block? >> let's go to florida. davidive air a, he's had a lot of ethical issues. really brutal stories in the miami herald this week.

national republicans have not reserved any time there at all. they just pulled out of that race this week. to me, it's a question of whether national republicans will see this as enough of a race to invest. my guess is no. i don't think you will see any national dollars spent there in the end. the democratic side, i would watch for john in massachusetts. the massachusetts is a true blue state. john tierney has had ethical problems of his own. >> it was a fascinating article. glad you could come on and talk about it. thanks so much, shira. >> thank you. today's tweet of the day comes from the plethora of tweets over the nfl referee deal. this is from esfn's freddie coleman. big thanks to replacement refs that despite being in over their heads decided to give it a tri. a lot more heart than most. ques?

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the replacements are out. the nfl referees will hit the field tonight after stent tively agreeing to an eight-year deal.

the longest for nfl officials in history. stephanie gosk join mess now in new york. power of the people. the fans win here, stephanie. >> yeah. the fans definitely win the. the officials might win as well. you know, if the point of this strike was to prove, without a doubt, how important the nfl officials are to the game then you can say more or less it was a success. but three weeks of missed call, bungled calls, misinterpreted rules and general chaos. when the officials went to the cable last night after that call, that last call in the seahawks/packers game on monday night, they were really negotiating from a position of strength. and they had most of what they asked for, an increase in salary, their pensions stayed the same. the one stipulation is that the nfl will be able to evaluate their performance and hire more refs that go into a kind of training pool that they can tap into if an official on the field isn't doing their job well. overall, you can say this was a

success for the officials union. chris? >> what's the word out there? is this like riding a bike. the refs have been out of the game for so long. will they be ready tonight? >> they say they will. they've been out but they've also been watching these games very closely and they know the rules well. they say they're really to just roll in and call the game. they will be watched very, very closely. it's sort of funny because the refs are always the enemy in these games and this is a situation where they're going to come into games and be cheered by fans who will be thrilled to see them on the field. >> is there a good sense, i don't know how much has come in from what happened inside those negotiations about really was the pressure from the fans. were they concerned, for example, i was talking to bob costas about this yesterday. whenever you have a game that's decided controversially, yeah, maybe that goes away, but attend of the season, if that game is a difference in the playoffs, then it sort of bubbles up all over again. do we know what the final

pressures were because it sure seemed like the nfl owners were pretty dug? >> well, you know, we saw that statement from the nfl that said, look, you know, they blew a call on monday night. they should have called pass interference on the offense. they didn't. that would have given the game to the packers and the packers lost that game. you also had this complete lack of faith and trust in those officials on the field across the board. the fans are upset. you had the coach us upset. a number of fines because the coaches, even the most experienced coaches got so angry they did things that everyone knows you shouldn't do, like grab a refs. and, of course, the players themselves are going to be glad that they are back there. it was really pressure from all sides. and we saw the officials proving, as i said, without a doubt, that they really are needed out there. it's not just anyone who can walk off the street, all it seemed like that at times, to walk off the street and call one

of thegames. >> someone made the comment yesterday, i'm going to steal the thought, you take the refs who everybody kind of loves to hate because at some point or the other their calls have gone against your team and you've turned them into these unlikely heroes. people who protect the safety of the players, people who, you know, at least have the skills and the understanding of the rules which are very different from the ones that these replacement referees, you know, work under, and so suddenly the refs are kind of the good guys. how did that happen? >> exactly. also, most football fans are aware of the fact that to be an nfl player, you need to have a lot of skill, you need to have a lot of experience, and it's really the elite that are out there. what we now know is that the officials are the elite as well. chris? >> stephanie gosk, great to see you. >> great to see you, too. that wraps up this hour of jansing and company. thomas roberts is up next. >> chris, i might have missed it. i know you're all high over the -- are you a browns fan? >> you have no idea.

>> really? >> tonight's a big night. >> head to head tonight, baby, the ravens, just so you know. >> you're going down. >> look at that expression. my gosh. >> i got to hope, you know. >> we'll have a side bet going on. my gosh, that was frosty. okay. chris, thank you. coming up, next hour, not only is it -- she scared me -- game on for nfl refs, it's gam nonvirginia where the candidates are butting heads in live events in the opened dominion. we're going to ask the chair whether mitt romney can use the debates in his massive war chest to turn his fortunes around. plus, is there trouble in romney/ryan campaign paradise? the daughter of a former presidential candidate join the show live to talk that out. and then coming out of the pro sports closet. my sit-down interview with the one time youngest owner in baseball kevin about overcoming big league homophobia.

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i'm thomas roberts. topping the agenda today, game on, sports fans, the nfl refs are headed back to the gridiron. and political fan, once again, both candidates are headed to the same state. this time they're going toe to toe in the old dominion. just 40 days until the campaign super bowl election day. and barack obama and mitt romney will campaign just over 200 miles apart. their third straight day in the same place. their events are scheduled for the exact same time this hour, 11:50 eastern. coincidence? i think not. one day after romney tried to connect with voters in a new ad in which he looked directly at the camera, president obama is out with his own doing the very same thing. >> too many americans are struggling to find work in today's economy. too many of those who are working are living paycheck to paycheck. >> today i believe that as a nation we are moving forward again. we have much more to do, to get folks back to work and make the